Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1887-07-14
ROCK ISLAND, THURSDAY. JULY IA. 1887.
THE BOULEVARDIER.

ILL IN u LII Llts
THE CONCENTRATED AND SuBLl-
MATED ESSENCE OF PARISIANISM.
The Boulevardier Not Necessarily French
by Birth-The Charm and Grace of
Parisian Life-The Annals of Day.
Dinner.
The Boulevardier is not necessarily Paris
ian or even French by birth Some Of the
most noted have been Russians, Americans,
Austrians, Belgians and Germans, who
through long years of residence in Paris had
become more Partisan than the Parisians,
but rarely or never English.
The Boulevardier only fourishes at night
1t requires the light of the Boulevards and
the shops, the heated atmosphere of the the
atres, the blaze Of gas over the baccarat
tables or the shaded candles of the cabinet
particular to develop the latent powers in
herent in him. Then he blossoms out and
shines resplendent, bright, dazzling, effer-
vescent, witty When he first emcrges in the
late afternoon from his seclusion it is to
drive or ride in the Bois to attend an exhi-
bition of paintings or famous sale of old
curiosities and art treasures, to inhale the
element in which he thrives, the air of the
boulevards, or perhaps to spend an hour at
the baccarat table reposing, preparing for
the hfe that only commences with the dinner
To understand the French character and ap-
preciate the charm aud grace of Partisan life
it is necessary not only to live among the
people and to know the language thoroughly,
but when that is acquired to learn the subtle
ties and illnesses of the language of the clubs,
the theatres and the boulevards, and then live
the life of boulevarder
in THE SACRED CIRCLE.
If you are admitted to the sacred circle YOU
will become more than convinced, you will
become enthusiastic, provided always that
You like and appreciate culture and art in its
manifold varieties and that you are not Pu-
ritan. You will join this inner circle, this
concentrated essence of all that is beautiful
and attractive and intelligent. You will be
come witty yourself, even if you never sris-
pected such quality in you, by contrast
with such constantly developed and stimu-
lated intelligence. You will acquire a keen
artistic taste and appreciation, and you will
rejoice and be happy in an atmosphere where
money does not predominate and crush eou
down and dull your intellect with its hard,
metallic weight, where it is little thought of
or spoken of, and where new play or a new
picture is Of far more interest than the opera
tions of the bourse, of which indeed scarcely
one of your companions could give YOU a
single quotation.
No one will know, no one will care. Your
life will be substantially the same If you
are rich you viii have handsome hotel in
stead of a modest apartment YoI will drive
your own horses instead of occasionally hiring
one, But your associates will be the same,
your life the same-the theaters no more in
teresting, the club no more attractive, the art
exhibition no more agreeable and the suppers
and conversation no more amusing
Indeed your money will be drawback if
relied upon or displayed at all The Boule-
vardier, as a rule, is not rich and cannot as
sociate with men who spend much money
You will begin your day by late break
fast and glance at The Figaro or Gaulois,
when you will take a ride or drive to the
Bois in the soft bairny air of spring up the
Champ Elysees with the trees in bloom and
the odors of the blossoms waited toward you
as you pass. You will see thousands of peo-
pie driving onward in graceful, gay eaui-
pages, a section of those whom the world has
treated well; descendants of the old nobility
of France, whose ancestors fought in the
crusades, fell at Crecy or Agincourt con-
quered at Fontenoy, and perhaps fought
side by side with your great-grandfather in
the revolution; children and grandchildren of
Napoleon's generals, who carried the eagles
from the Baltic to the Mediterranean, from
the steppes of Russia to the English channel
OTHER INTERESTING PEOPLE
You will see Jewish bankers and brokers.
whose forefathers, despised and miserable.
had been ground down and prosecuted by the
ancestors of those they now associate with
and eclipse with wealth You will meet
Americans of the old sterling type, and with
Americans more numerous whose horses and
carriages are being paid for by the taxpayers
of New York and other cities, with others i'll
at home in their new splendor, whom oil
wells, silver mines, coal mines have raised
from the dust to an alliance with the old his
torical families of Europe; South Americans
who have negotiated loans for their country
and have intercepted the money en- route
You will pass in the stately Avenue des
Bois de Boulogne, or the long promenade be-
tween the nodding acacias, men and women
of every nation, every rank, station and re-
hgion, the aristocracy of birth, of wealth and
of beauty You will see the most delicate
type OF patrician beauty, and only know
whether she is leader of the Fauboure St.
Germain or Of the demi monde because YOU
De-, H.
heart. You will return refreshed by the air
and the movement and amused by the ever
recurring, ever different pageant which has
passed before your eyes With what YOU
know and what you have seen you will have
had glimpse into half hundred tragedies,
comedies and farces, and you will muse and
talk and brighten your ideas with the friends
you meet at the club, in the half hour you
spend at a picture gallery or on the Boule-
ward before dinner
That, whether you take it at the Cafe
Anglais Lyon dor or the club, will~be the
most agreeable hour of the day, unless it is
the supper or the theatre You NAV sit with
Rochefort or Montgomery, with Prince Murat
or Claretie. with Carolus Duran or Albert
Wolf; you will certainly be amused and prob
ably amusing; you win hear all that has hap
pened or is supposed to have happened in the
monde OF demi monde of high life or the
coulisses You will hear new ideas and new
anecdotes, and you will walk along the
brightly lighted and thronged street to the
first representation of play, wondering how
your companions could be so amusing. so
witty, and how you could be considered so en-.
tertaining, ignorant that it is q subtle electric
current evolved from the natural contact of
bright intellects.-"W. NJ c. in New York
Graphic.
Oft obscure the road that leads te health
Unmarked by board or sign: